Below is a list of diabetes-related terms and their definitions. Adapted from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK).
A1C
A test that measures a person's average blood glucose (blood sugar) level over the past two to three months. Hemoglobin is the part of a red blood cell that carries oxygen to the cells and sometimes joins with the glucose in the bloodstream. Also called hemoglobin A1C or HbA1c, the test shows the amount of glucose that sticks to the red blood cell, which is proportional to the amount of glucose in the blood.
Acanthosis nigricans
A skin condition characterized by darkened skin patches; common in people whose body is not responding correctly to the insulin that they make in their pancreas (insulin resistance). This skin condition is also seen in people who have prediabetes or type 2 diabetes.
Acute
Describes something that happens suddenly and for a short time. Opposite of chronic.
Adhesive capsulitis (also commonly known as “frozen shoulder”)
A condition of the shoulder associated with diabetes that results in pain and loss of the ability to move the shoulder.
Adult-onset diabetes
Former term for type 2 diabetes.
AGEs
Stands for advanced glycosylation end products. AGEs are produced in the body when glucose links with protein. They play a role in damaging blood vessels, which can lead to diabetes complications.
Albuminuria
A condition in which the urine has more than normal amounts of a protein called albumin. Albuminuria may be a sign of nephropathy (kidney disease).
Alpha cell
A type of cell in the pancreas. Alpha cells make and release a hormone called glucagon. The body sends a signal to the alpha cells to make glucagon when blood glucose (blood sugar) falls too low. Then glucagon reaches the liver where it tells it to release glucose into the blood for energy.
Amylin
A hormone formed by beta cells in the pancreas. Amylin regulates the timing of glucose release into the bloodstream after eating by slowing the emptying of the stomach.
Amyotrophy
A type of neuropathy resulting in pain, weakness and/or wasting in the muscles.
Anemia
A condition in which the number of red blood cells is less than normal, resulting in less oxygen being carried to the body's cells.
Angiopathy
Any disease of the blood vessels (veins, arteries, capillaries) or lymphatic vessels.
Antibodies
Proteins made by the body to protect itself from "foreign" substances such as bacteria or viruses. People develop type 1 diabetes when their bodies make antibodies that destroy the body's own insulin-making beta cells.
ARB
An oral medicine that lowers blood pressure; ARB stands for angiotensin receptor blocker.
Arteriosclerosis
Hardening of the arteries.
Artery
A large blood vessel that carries blood with oxygen from the heart to all parts of the body.
Atherosclerosis
Clogging, narrowing, and hardening of the body's large arteries and medium-sized blood vessels. Atherosclerosis can lead to stroke, heart attack, eye problems, and kidney problems.
Autoimmune disease
Disorder of the body's immune system in which the immune system mistakenly attacks and destroys body tissue that it believes to be foreign.
Autonomic neuropathy
A type of neuropathy affecting the lungs, heart, stomach, intestines, bladder, or genitals.
Background retinopathy
An alternate name for non-proliferative retinopathy.
Basal rate
A steady trickle of low levels of longer-acting insulin, such as that used in insulin pumps.
Beta cell
A cell that makes insulin. Beta cells are located in the islets of the pancreas.
Blood glucose (also called blood sugar)
The main source of energy that food is turned into that’s found in the blood.
Blood glucose (blood sugar) level
The amount of blood glucose at a specific time. It is measured in milligrams per deciliter, or mg/dL.
Blood glucose meter
A small, portable machine used by people with diabetes to check their blood glucose levels. After pricking the skin with a lancet, one places a drop of blood on a test strip in the machine. The blood glucose meter (sometimes called a monitor) measures and displays the blood glucose level.
Blood glucose monitoring
Checking blood glucose level on a regular basis in order to manage diabetes. A blood glucose meter or continuous glucose monitor (CGM) is needed for blood glucose monitoring.
Blood pressure
The force of blood exerted on the inside walls of blood vessels. Blood pressure is expressed as a ratio (example: 120/80, read as "120 over 80"). The first number is the systolic pressure, or the pressure when the heart pushes blood out into the arteries. The second number is the diastolic pressure, or the pressure when the heart rests.
Blood vessels
Tubes that carry blood to and from all parts of the body. The three main types of blood vessels are arteries, veins, and capillaries.
Body mass index (BMI)
A measure used to evaluate body weight relative to a person's height. BMI is used to find out if a person is underweight, normal weight, overweight, or obese.
Bolus
An extra amount of insulin taken to cover an expected rise in blood glucose (blood sugar), often related to a meal or snack.
Borderline diabetes
Not a term recognized by the American Diabetes Association, borderline diabetes is sometimes used to describe prediabetes.
Brittle diabetes
A term not recognized by the American Diabetes Association, sometimes used to describe when a person's blood glucose (blood sugar) levels move in extremes from low to high and from high to low.
C-peptide
"Connecting peptide", a substance the pancreas releases into the bloodstream in equal amounts to insulin. A test of C-peptide levels shows how much insulin the body is making.
Capillary
The smallest of the body's blood vessels. Oxygen and glucose pass through capillary walls and enter the cells. Waste products such as carbon dioxide pass back from the cells into the blood through capillaries.
Carbohydrate
One of the three main nutrients in food. Foods that provide carbohydrates are starches, vegetables, fruits, dairy products, and sugars.
Carbohydrate counting
A method of meal planning for people with diabetes based on counting the number of grams of carbohydrate in food.
Cardiologist
A doctor who treats people who have heart problems, which are more common in people with diabetes.
Cardiometabolic risk factors
A set of conditions that have a big effect on whether or not you develop diabetes and/or heart disease.
Cardiovascular disease
Disease of the heart and blood vessels (arteries, veins, and capillaries).
Cataract
Clouding of the lens in front of the eye.
Cerebrovascular disease
Damage to blood vessels in the brain. Vessels can burst and bleed or become clogged with fatty deposits. When blood flow is interrupted, resulting in a stroke. Brain cells die or are damaged.
Certified diabetes care and education specialist (CDCES)
A health care professional with expertise in diabetes education who has met eligibility requirements and successfully completed a certification exam.
Charcot's foot
A condition in which the joints and soft tissue in the foot are destroyed.
Cholesterol
A type of fat produced by the liver and found in the blood. It is also found in some foods. Cholesterol is used by the body to make hormones and build cell walls. When you have problems with your cholesterol, it can affect the blood flow through your blood vessels.
Chronic
Describes something that is long-lasting. Opposite of acute.
Circulation
The flow of blood through the body's heart and blood vessels.
Coma
A sleep-like state in which a person is not conscious. May be caused by hyperglycemia (high blood glucose) or hypoglycemia (low blood glucose) in people with diabetes.
Combination oral medicines
A pill that includes two or more different medicines.
Combination therapy
The use of more than one medication (this can be oral and injected medications typically used to treat type 2 diabetes and insulin) to manage blood glucose (blood sugar) levels.
Complications
Harmful effects of diabetes such as damage to the eyes, heart, blood vessels, nerves system, teeth and gums, feet, skin, or kidneys. Studies show that managing blood glucose (blood sugar), blood pressure, and cholesterol can help prevent or delay these problems.
Congestive heart failure
A weakening of the heart’s pumping ability due to changes in the heart muscle. The heart is then too weak to pump enough blood around the body.
Coronary heart disease
The most common form of heart disease caused by atherosclerosis, the stiffening and narrowing of arteries caused, in part, by fatty plaques that build up along blood vessel walls in the coronaries (the arteries that supply the heart muscle with blood). Coronary heart disease can starve the heart of oxygen.
Creatinine
A waste product from protein in the diet and from the muscles of the body. Creatinine is removed from the body by the kidneys. As kidney disease progresses, the level of creatinine in the blood increases.
Dawn phenomenon
The early-morning (4 a.m. to 8 a.m.) rise in blood glucose level that may stay higher later into the morning.
Dehydration
The loss of too much body fluid compared to the amount of fluid you’re taking in. This lack of fluid keeps your body from working properly and can be caused from frequent urinating, sweating, diarrhea, or vomiting.
Desensitization
Reducing response such as an allergic reaction to something. For example, if someone has diabetes and has frequent low blood glucose (blood sugar) levels (hypoglycemia) the body may not react with the same symptoms that would signal that there’s a problem.
Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT)
A study by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, conducted from 1983 to 1993 in people with type 1 diabetes. The study showed that intensive therapy compared to conventional therapy significantly helped prevent or delay diabetes complications. Intensive therapy included multiple daily insulin injections or the use of an insulin pump with multiple blood glucose (blood sugar) readings each day. Complications followed in the study included diabetic retinopathy, neuropathy, and nephropathy.
Diabetes educator
A health care professional who teaches people who have diabetes how to manage their diabetes. Some diabetes educators are certified diabetes care and education specialists (CDCES)s.
Diabetes insipidus
A condition unrelated to type 1, type 2, or gestational diabetes that is also characterized by frequent and heavy urination, excessive thirst, and an overall feeling of weakness.
Diabetes (diabetes mellitus)
A condition where the body’s blood glucose (blood sugar) levels are higher than normal (hyperglycemia) resulting from the body's inability to use or store blood glucose for energy. In type 1 diabetes, the pancreas no longer makes insulin and blood glucose can’t enter the cells to be used for energy. In type 2 diabetes, either the pancreas does not make enough insulin or can’t use the insulin it does produce effectively.
Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP)
A study by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases conducted from 1998 to 2001 in people at high risk for type 2 diabetes. All study participants had impaired glucose tolerance, also called prediabetes, and were overweight. The study showed that people who lost 5 to 7 percent of their body weight through a low-fat, low-calorie diet, and moderate exercise (usually walking for 30 minutes, five days a week) reduced their risk of getting type 2 diabetes by 58 percent. Participants who received treatment with the oral diabetes drug metformin reduced their risk of getting type 2 diabetes by 31 percent.
Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA)
An emergency condition in which high blood glucose (blood sugar) levels, along with a lack of insulin, result in the breakdown of body fat for energy and an accumulation of ketones in the blood and urine. Signs of DKA are nausea and vomiting, stomach pain, fruity breath odor, and rapid breathing. Untreated DKA can lead to coma and death.
Diabetic mastopathy
A rare fibrous breast condition occurring in women, and sometimes men, with long-standing diabetes. The lumps are not malignant and can be surgically removed, although they often recur.
Diabetic myelopathy
Damage to the spinal cord found in some people with diabetes.
Diabetic retinopathy
A type of diabetic eye disease; damage to the small blood vessels in the retina. Loss of vision may result.
Diabetogenic
Causing diabetes. For example, some drugs cause blood glucose (blood sugar) levels to rise, resulting in diabetes.
Diabetologist
A doctor who specializes in treating people with diabetes.
Diagnosis
The determination of a disease from its signs and symptoms.
Dialysis
The process of cleaning wastes from the blood artificially. This job is normally done by the kidneys. If the kidneys fail, the blood must be cleaned artificially with special equipment. The two major forms of dialysis are hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. Diabetic kidney disease can lead to the loss of kidney function and the need for dialysis.
Dietitian
A health care professional who advises people about meal planning, weight control, and diabetes management. A registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) has more training.
Dilated eye exam
A test done by an eye care specialist in which the pupil (the black center) of the eye is temporarily enlarged with eyedrops to allow the specialist to see the inside of the eye more easily.